Officials in Yuba County, California, are hoping a voter referendum on the Enterprise Rancheria's casino will convince Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) to negotiate a gaming compact with the tribe and the Bureau of Indian Affairs to take non-reservation land into trust for the project.

The tribe is proposing a $150 million casino, hotel and convention center on 40 acres in the county. The tribe is looking off the reservation because Chairwoman Glenda Nelson says the reservation is environmentally sensitive.

But the tribe is running into opposition from two tribes based outside the county. The Rumsey Band of Wintun Indians and the United Auburn Indian Community, who are represented by the same lawyer, have poured $150,000 into a campaign to oppose Measure G, the nonbinding referendum. The Auburns operate a highly successful casino on non-reservation land.

The local newspaper is urging people to side with the Enterprise Rancheria. "We support construction of the casino and its attendant hotel facilities, and we urge Yuba County voters to send a strong message, through Measure G, that they approve as well. This project is badly needed to jump-start the county's lagging economy," The Marysville-Yuba City Appeal-Democrat said in an editorial.

Get the Story:
Counties' ballot measures test voter clout on casinos (The Sacramento Bee 10/17)
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Editorial: Vote ‘yes' on casino to spark local economy (The Marysville-Yuba City Appeal-Democrat 10/16)